Games Done Quick Founder Mike Uyama to Step Down

 

This weekend marks the beginning of another Awesome Games Done Quick charity speedrunning marathon, and it turns out it will be the last for founder Mike Uyama for the foreseeable future. Games Done Quick started in Uyama’s mother’s basement back in 2010 and has grown to raise over $41 million for various charities, during which Uyama has served as Owner and Managing Director. Now he’ll be stepping down from those roles after this year’s event, handing over the responsibilities to longtime GDQ Director of Operations Matt Merkle.

 

In the meantime, the organization will also be hiring a new assistant manager to help with Merkle’s previous responsibilities.

 

RELATED: Splatoon 3 Will Kick Off Charity Speedrunning Madness of Awesome Games Done Quick 2023

 

Among the charities for which Games Done Quick has raised funds through speedrunning streams over the years are Prevent Cancer Foundation and Médecins Sans Frontiéres (Doctors Without Borders). Here’s what Uyama had to say about stepping down after 13 years:

 

“Since I started Games Done Quick, I’ve seen it grow from a small volunteer effort to the thriving organization that it is today … I would not have been able to do it without the help of Matt Merkle and the growth of GDQ would not have been possible without the help of the speedrunning community, which has grown both in size and diversity over the years. I’m not sure where I’ll go next, but one thing I am sure about is that I will take a break and a vacation before diving headfirst into my next adventure.”

 

Merkle followed that statement up with one of his own, closing it out by saying he looks forward to “working with the speedrunning community and our staff going forward, and I hope to lead GDQ to new fundraising records!”

 

For those new to the event, here’s the official description and this year’s schedule:

 

Games Done Quick has been hosting speedrunning marathons for more than a decade. The purpose is simple: Expert players from around the world highlight their skills by beating games as quickly as possible – often taking minutes to run through video games that might ordinarily require dozens of hours to complete. All the while, viewers give donations in a raucous livestream, the proceeds of which are given directly to the event’s charity partner.

 

Awesome Games Done Quick 2023 runs from January 8-15.

 

Source: Press release

 

 

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Joseph Luster is the Games and Web editor at Otaku USA Magazine. You can read his comics at subhumanzoids. Follow him on Twitter @Moldilox.